Boiling Point

Tiller's take: receivers

Joe Tiller got plenty of questions about his retirement and successor Danny Hope at the Big Ten media day, but when talk turned to specific units, many reporters were curious about Purdue's receiving corps.
Tiller is confident senior Greg Orton will be a nice go-to option. Orton was slowed by a groin injury in the spring, but Tiller is excited to see how Orton performs this fall. Tiller always has been impressed with Orton's maturity and skill level, and his intense work ethic improved his stock.
"I don't think in the winter, we've had a wide receiver that has worked harder than he worked," Tiller said. "He hit the field running. He was a full-speed guy, was a leadership guy from 6 a.m. conditioning. If he picks up in the fall where he left off in the winter, he could be a real difference-maker for us."
Tiller still isn't sure how the receiving corps will fare, though.
Besides Orton, the majority of the options are unproven. Arsenio Curry and Aaron Valentin are talent-laden transfers. Keith Smith is a converted quarterback. Returning players Joe Whitest and Desmond Tardy have yet to produce in limited action.
But Tiller likes the talent, calling Curry a big, physical guy and "a mature Selwyn Lymon." Valentin athleticism has impressed, and Smith gives the team a tall, physical option in the slot. Still, Tiller worries they may be slow getting started.
"I think because of the evolution of the position, our receivers may not be as productive as we'd like them to be until about the third or the fourth game of the year," Tiller said. "It may take them that long to really get in sync with Curtis (Painter)."

-- By Stacy Clardie, The Journal Gazette

Tiller's take: eligibility, true freshmen PT

Joe Tiller has been spending much of Purdue's offseason in Wyoming where he and his wife, Arnette, are building a house. That's where they'll settle when Tiller retires after this season. But that doesn't mean Tiller is out of the loop with his team.
Though Tiller won't return to campus until August 4, he's been checking in with coaches and academic advisers. In terms of the latter, it sounds like most of the players will be ready to go when camp starts August 10.
Tiller said only freshman receiver Jordan Brewer currently is academically ineligible. Brewer will enroll in junior college. Purdue should be able to absorb that loss with Greg Orton, Desmond Tardy, Keith Smith, Arsenio Curry and Aaron Valentin all as nice options at the position.
Tiller will find out more on potential academic casualties when he returns to campus.
"There probably will be a surprise," Tiller said at the Big Ten media day. "There always is. What you hope is you only have one surprise -- you don't have six. ... We don't have many guys on the bubble anymore. We don't have the 19 we had the first year we were at Purdue. We may have three or four (per year)."

• Tiller can't pinpoint just which freshmen will get playing time this season, but he's high on linebacker Dwayne Beckford. Tiller likes Beckford's speed and strength combination, though that may be on display sparingly. Anthony Heygood and Jason Werner are "locks" to start at linebacker, according to Tiller. It looks like Kevin Green may be moving toward that label, too. Tiller said Green had "looked like Tarzan and played like Jane" early in his career, but in spring ball, Green showed the kind of physical style of play the coaches' desire.
• Another true freshman to watch: running back Ralph Bolden. Tiller said Bolden is rehabbing from an injury, but if he's given the OK by doctors, "he's talented enough to play as a true freshman."

-- By Stacy Clardie, The Journal Gazette

Heisman hopeful

Curtis Painter, dressed sharply in a grey pinstripe suit, wasn't only surrounded by reporters at his table inside the Hyatt Regency Friday at the Big Ten media day.
He was joined by stacks of DVDs with his picture on the cover and calendars spread over the table top.
Purdue is "Painting a Masterpiece" this season -- that's the tagline for the Heisman push for its quarterback.
The sports information department also launched CurtisPainter12.com to promote the fifth-year senior. It conveniently debuted Thursday, the first day of the two-day media festitivies.
Painter doesn't seem to know what to make of the hype.
"My mom likes it," said Painter, smiling. "It's neat. They did a good job with it. It looks pretty cool. But this kind of stuff certainly is the result of a good season, and it comes later. There's a lot of focus right now on Purdue football. A lot has to be done before any of this can even happen. It's a cool thing, but it doesn't really mean much for me."

-- By Stacy Clardie, The Journal Gazette

More Boilermakers agree to free agent contracts

Can we please focus on Aaron Lane for a moment?
A two-time All-Big Ten academic selection. A kid who never whined publicly about being benched his senior season. A kid who knows how to work hard. A kid who has used faith -- in himself, in his family and in God -- to fuel him to never quit striving for his ultimate goal of the NFL.
Lane made the first step when he landed a free agent contract with the Miami Dolphins.
He'll join fellow Fort Wayne native and former Purdue teammate Selwyn Lymon on a 6 a.m. flight to Miami Thursday. They'll join perhaps 10 other free agent pick-ups -- along with the players who were drafted -- at the team's rookie mini-camp.
Don't be surprised if Lane sticks around after that.
He provides versatility with the ability to play slot receiver, cornerback or on special teams. His best chance is to stick on special teams first, and he showed during his senior season at Purdue he can make an impact there. Coach Joe Tiller and special teams coordinator Mark Hagen praised Lane's fearless and consistent play. They also loved his attitude and work ethic, certainly traits that only can be respected at the next level.

• Neither Selwyn Lymon nor his father, Terry, will return my calls. I've heard they're not happy we reported Selwyn's off-field incidents. They may not be the only ones. Lymon's former high school coach, Sherwood Haydock, said Lymon's "off-field antics weren't as bad as perceived to be by the media." I asked him to explain that. "Obviously, he did wrong. I'm not backing him by any means. But there's a lot of college athletes in the same situation that just don't get caught. He got caught enough that it really hurt him, and it's cost him some money. I think after next season, he would have been drafted."
• According to Purdue's Web site, seven Boilermakers have agreed to terms on free agent contracts. Besides Lane and Lymon, linebacker Josh Ferguson, cornerback Terrell Vinson and center Robbie Powell landed with the Browns; safety Justin Scott will be with the Redskins; and Dorien Bryant is headed for Pittsburgh. No word yet on whether offensive guard Jordan Grimes has hooked up with a NFL team.

-- By Stacy Clardie, The Journal Gazette

Tiller announces spring awards

Not surprisingly with how many impact players missed time this spring due to injury, quite a few new faces earned Purdue's spring awards.

• Quarterback Joey Elliott and linebacker Jason Werner earned Most Improved.
• Receiver Aaron Valentin and defensive tackle Nick Mondek were given the Newcomer Award.
• The Pit Bull Award, given to the player who sustains tenacity and intense play throughout the spring, went to center/guard Cory Benton and defensive tackle Ryan Baker. It was the second consecutive year Baker earned the honor.
• Safety Frank Duong, known for his consistent special teams play, got the Hammer Award. That's presented to the outstanding hitter of the spring.

-- By Stacy Clardie, The Journal Gazette

Brock Spack's analysis of the spring

Defensive coordinator Brock Spack spoke with reporters after the Black & Gold Game Saturday. Here's some of what he had to say:

• "I thought we made some progress. We found out a lot of information about our younger players. We had quite a few guys in purple jerseys this spring. More than I've seen. But it gives the younger players a lot of opportunities. You can see how they progress and how they handle stress."
• On the linebackers: "Those guys made a lot of big strides. We've got some guys who can run and do some things. We're just not real deep. So we'll see what happens. We've got some guys behind (the starters) that made some moves this spring. There will be some good competition coming in with those young freshmen. I could see two of those guys maybe being on the two-deep."
• On the secondary: "The deepest position when they're all out here is our secondary, which is unbelievable for the first time in a long time. I think they're going to be a pretty salty crew if they're all healthy and ready to go."
• On redshirt freshmen defensive ends Nickcaro Golding and Gerald Gooden. "I thought Gooden was kind of a surprise. I thought Golding would be ahead of him, and I don't think that was the case heading out of the spring. I think Gooden could play here. Gooden is a little more disciplined right now. Golding is a very athletic kid and a high-motor guy, but you've got to execute the defense. Gooden showed some good things with him."

-- By Stacy Clardie, The Journal Gazette

Danny Hope talks about the spring

Assistant head coach and offensive line coach Danny Hope was swarmed by reporters after the Black & Gold Game. Here's some of what he had to say:

• "We've got a long ways to go, but I think we gained some momentum throughout the course of the spring. That's exciting to me. Obviously up front with the offensive line, we had a lot of young guys out there and it was a great experience for those guys. A lot of young guys on the offensive line who got a lot of reps next spring may or may not be in the rotation next year. So it's a blessing in some ways. They got advance training early in their career."
• "I think it's really important that we continue working hard as soon as spring ball is over. They have a period of time coming up where it's voluntary workouts. You hope a lot of guys will be committed to coming in and working out and getting stronger. Obviously, they need to be committed to technique work on their own."
• Asked about the potential of the team: "It's spring. There's so many guys in purple right now, that would be hard to make an assessment of that right now. I like our young guys, though. I think there's a lot of guys who got a lot of varsity reps on both sides of the ball."
• For defensive coordinator Brock Spack's take on the spring, check back Monday.

-- By Stacy Clardie, The Journal Gazette

Impressions from the spring game

Starting quarterback Curtis Painter only got one half of work in Purdue's Black & Gold Game Saturday, and, again, he took awhile to get going.
Hopefully, that's a habit he'll learn to break by the fall, in his final season.
The first team offense didn't produce a first down until its fourth series. Painter completed 11 of 19 passes for 102 yards and had at least three passes tipped. He didn't throw a touchdown and didn't seem particularly sharp. Perhaps some of that was because of playing behind a make-shift offensive line.
Back up quarterbacks Joey Elliott and Justin Siller got the majority of the reps.
Elliott started by leading the second-team offense before taking the reins of the first team in the second half. Against the No. 2 defense, Elliott completed 12 of 15 passes and threw two touchdowns for the Gold team. Playing with the first team offense, Elliott completed 9 of 12 for 108 yards and had an interception.
Siller, the most mobile option of the quarterbacks, operated mostly out of option sets. He rushed five times for 28 yards. He threw for 60 yards and two touchdowns but also had an interception returned for a touchdown.
"The way (the back-ups) played (Saturday) was about the way they played all spring," coach Joe Tiller said. "Elliott was much improved this spring, and he had an edge over Siller."

• Dan Dierking was the most impressive running back, gaining 88 yards on 16 carries. Too bad he likely won't see much playing time in the fall. With Jaycen Taylor and Kory Sheets set at No. 1 and No. 2, Dierking's chance likely won't come until 2009. Tiller said Dierking added about 8 pounds in the offseason, and he's seen that show up on the field. "He's breaking tackles this spring he didn't break last fall, so this guy has some upside to him," Tiller said.
• Tiller said he has never had this many injuries in spring ball, and Purdue added some more purple shirts Saturday. Greg Orton, Josh McKinley, Alex Magee and Anthony Heygood didn't play in the game, though they likely would have been good to go for a regular-season game. Still, add those with the injuries to offensive linemen, etc., and it may have been tough to get an accurate assessment of the team. "We're going on good faith, so to speak, that these kids are going to be healthy and they're going to have a good fall camp," Tiller said. "If they do, we'll be fine as a team."
• Tiller said redshirt freshman defensive end Nickcaro Golding has been suspended for violation of team rules. He wouldn't say when Golding would be reinstated to the team. Golding was projected as a backup end -- and one with talent.

-- By Stacy Clardie, The Journal Gazette

Catching up with Curtis

Quarterback Curtis Painter will wrap his final spring practice session with Purdue soon. Before he does, he took some time to chat about his legacy, the talent on offense and looked ahead to next season.
You've already broken some records here and you'll probably leave as one of the best statistical quarterbacks in Purdue's history. Do you think about that much? Not really. It really means a lot to be mentioned in the same sentence as some of the guys who are up there, but as far as numbers and records, it doesn't mean much to me. I'd be a lot happier with a very successful season and ending with a great career than being in the record books for a bunch of statistics.
Did you watch much film on yourself over the winter? A little bit, the games we've played. It's really just a learning process in the offseason. By the end of the season, you forget the last game you play, so going back and taking a look kind of refreshes you on things. You take a mental note of that and try to fix that when you come out here in spring ball.
Winning the Motor City Bowl was big for the program, but especially the fashion in which you guys did it, needing a last-minute drive and then that game-winning field goal, what did that do for your confidence? I think it is a big confidence boost. The last couple years, we haven't been known for winning it in the end. We've had a couple close ones, and we've been on the other side of it. We do all this work, practicing the two-minute game, practicing the last-minute field goal. To have it be successful, it really means a lot. 
Let's take a look at your weapons on offense. You lost Dorien Bryant and Dustin Keller and two starting offensive linemen. What about the guys who could replace them? I think we've got a lot of ability. Those guys were playing behind a couple good guys, both at the line and at the receiver spots. I think right now it's just a matter of getting a little rhythm, getting the chemistry with me and them.
You probably haven't scouted the Big Ten much yet, knowing who is back and who isn't, but where do you think you guys can finish in the league? Can you beat Ohio State and Michigan? I think we have the ability. It's just keeping that rolling throughout the entire season, not having those (bad) games. We played some great teams, but we should have been more effective on offense. So just trying to keep those games we took a step back out of the system. I think we can definitely compete with those teams.

-- By Stacy Clardie, The Journal Gazette

Offensive line still a concern

The lack of healthy offensive linemen could mean Purdue alters its spring game for the second consecutive season.
The Boilermakers have been without three projected starters and a key backup this spring because of injuries. (Left tackle Sean Sester is scheduled to have back surgery this week.)
That's meant a major shuffle up front during practice, even for a projected starter who is healthy. Right guard Justin Pierce, who started three games for injured Jordan Grimes last season, has been playing tackle during spring practice. Freshmen Ken Plue and Rick Schmeig are playing at guard, and the team also is trying to find its center. Converted defensive lineman Jared Zwilling is battling returning player Cory Benton there.
"It's kind of a win-lose because the younger guys are getting in there, getting some reps and getting better," Pierce said. "I would like to be back with the projected starters just so we can work on our chemistry a little bit more and get to know each other that much better."

• One player who came out of purple, the color of jersey injured players wear, on Monday was safety Torri Williams. The oft-injured Williams ruptured his Achilles' tendon last season and slowly has been working his way back. Coach Joe Tiller said Williams participated in all aspects of practice and is "better than I thought he would be."
• Top returning receiver Greg Orton continued to be sidelined with a groin injury. Tiller said Orton intended to practice Monday but didn't.
• Quarterback Joey Elliott had a team-high 41 snaps during the team's scrimmage Saturday, and Justin Siller had 39, Tiller said. Starter Curtis Painter had 37. Tiller said he and his staff still are trying to find out more about their non-starters. "There isn't a backup right now," Tiller said.
• Tiller didn't call Kory Sheets "the other guy" Monday, but he was asked about the backup running back. One reporter wondered what can be done for a player as far into his career as Sheets to stop the fumbling problems. "All you can do is emphasize it and continue to emphasize it," Tiller said. "He's been very good this spring. The one good thing is he knows that's an issue. If a player will accept it, there's a chance for some headway."

-- By Stacy Clardie, The Journal Gazette